RCA Italiana Quads: a definitve (?) answer.

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winopener

2K Club - QQ Super Nova
Since 2002/2003
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After the findings of the Morricone Q8 i've noticed a strange issue: release date for the tape version was 10/73 (october 1973) which was the same date for the previous one i've found (Patty Pravo "pazza idea"), while the CD4 has 6/74 (june 74) on the disc labels and.... 11/74 (november 1974) on the back cover.
Wondered if there was online a RCA italiana catalog for 1975... AND FOUND IT!!!!!
On the index page, there was a section "Nastri quadrifonici" (Quadraphonic Tapes). YUPPIEEEEEE!!!! Page 18....
(fip flip flip....)
Here's the complete quad releases distribuited in Italy by RCA Italiana - see photo.
Green dot: cd4
Blue dot: Q8.
Red X: italian-only release.
 

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Some consideration:
1) Italian-only releases for RCA are 4 titles only, all 4 on Q8, 1 also on CD4
2) All the other quad listed have the exact same cat.n. as the USA release, so i can presume these were just "imported" and not duplicated here. I may be wrong but i wouldn't hold my breath on finding a Hugo Montenegro Q8 cart "Made in Italy".
3) Morricone is the only one that has both q8 and cd4, and is the only CD4 ever done by RCA Italiana. A bit sad... however RCA Italiana didn't have CD4 pressing capabilities, so the disc was pressed in USA, imported bulk and packaged in Italy.
4) This is a January 1975 catalogue, and all 4 titles are 1973 releases. RCA Italiana had some BIG hits in 1974 (the major one Claudio Baglioni "E tu", n.1 single of the year, n. 6 album of the year) so a quad release of at least one title would had been a sign for keeping italian quads alive. None found, unfortunately.

My guess: RCA Italiana tried the Quad 8 way in late 1973 / early 1974, it didn't sold well and they stopped after only these four releases. Second quad-water testing for CD4 with Morricone, bummed again. End of the RCA Italiana quads.
 
Last consideration: Morricone Soundtracks was a single-inventory release - for "ordinary stereo" there was a double - lp / mc /8t named "un film una musica" which used the same photo shot of "soundtracks" and all the tracks on the quad releases are present on the double stereo (lp - mc - 8t) version.
 
Lucio Battisti "Il nostro caro angelo" is still a best selling title, he is still considered one of the best author/singer of the last century, just like The Beatles worldwide.
His songwriting was ahead of the time, not really related to classic italian music style, he was on his own style.
I wonder how good his only quad title sounds like.

Well, internet is a strange beast, searching for serial number of his Q8 I found a picture of that on his non official fan page.


 
I HAVE THESE lPS THEY ARE ALL MARKED sq QUAD
THE DORSEY IS NOT BUT PLAYS AS QUAD IN FULL SURROUND

AL Korvin plays Ann 30 VPAS936

Peter hamiLton Destination Musicland VPAS 954

Antonio VavaLdi Le Quasttro Stagioni VPAS 933

ALex Brown Music maestro PLease VPAS 947

Mario Pezzotta Sophisticated Lady VPAS 937


Dorsey Dodd Colossal Organ hammond 3 (not Marked Quad)
 
I notice there's no Tomita here, though I'm sure RCA Italiana imported at least one quadradisc album with an import sticker on the cover.
I saw one on ebay last year.

RCA Ltd seems to indicate a UK import.
 
I HAVE THESE lPS THEY ARE ALL MARKED sq QUAD
THE DORSEY IS NOT BUT PLAYS AS QUAD IN FULL SURROUND

AL Korvin plays Ann 30 VPAS936

Peter hamiLton Destination Musicland VPAS 954

Antonio VavaLdi Le Quasttro Stagioni VPAS 933

ALex Brown Music maestro PLease VPAS 947

Mario Pezzotta Sophisticated Lady VPAS 937


Dorsey Dodd Colossal Organ hammond 3 (not Marked Quad)

These are all "Vedette" quads, they did SQ and Q8 too.
Vedette Q8 looks like this one.
 

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Many thanks to winopener and lucanu (who did it again) for these infos!!!
 
Thanks for all the above research! Any chance of hearing Pazza Idea in quad? Do one of you guys have the Q8?
 
I second that, this post does have my interest stured in the Italian releases

OD
 
Thanks for all the above research! Any chance of hearing Pazza Idea in quad? Do one of you guys have the Q8?

Have the cart, and unfortunately all the equipment boxed away...
 
With all the great Italian prog rock groups of the 70's its such a shame none of their music got mixed for quad.... Imagine L'isola Di Niente in surround!
 
That's exactly what i was hoping myself... unfortunately, these 4 quad testing tapes probably didn't found a decent market, and everything stopped.
The Morricone quad probably was choosen, among the four quad mixes ready to go, just because it wasn't a "seasonable" title but a Greatest Hits, so with a longer lasting potential. After all, all other 3 artists had a new stereo album already out by 11/74 and going strong.
 
With all the great Italian prog rock groups of the 70's its such a shame none of their music got mixed for quad.... Imagine L'isola Di Niente in surround!

...and they where on Lucio Battisti label at that time....

I think they mixed more artists in quad at that time and we should get access to RCA Italiana vaults one day, or directly talk to artists.
Just like Adriano Celentano "Yuppi du" CD, which was pressed from the never released SQ master
 
Out of interest, how is it know an SQ master was used for the CD release?



OD
 
Out of interest, how is it know an SQ master was used for the CD release?



OD

I bought a sealed copy of the vinyl and it's a completely different mix with different edits. Not SQ.

But if you do listen to one of the songs from that CD from Grooveshark (I own a fair condition CD) you will hear "familiar" OOP effects. I tried with my old SQ script to decode it and guess what? It's SQ for sure! It was pressed from CBS Sugar in 1975, I guess we have other unlisted SQ quad pressing from CBS Sugar on CD.
 
I bought a sealed copy of the vinyl and it's a completely different mix with different edits. Not SQ.

But if you do listen to one of the songs from that CD from Grooveshark (I own a fair condition CD) you will hear "familiar" OOP effects. I tried with my old SQ script to decode it and guess what? It's SQ for sure! It was pressed from CBS Sugar in 1975, I guess we have other unlisted SQ quad pressing from CBS Sugar on CD.

I'm trying to find a CBS-Sugar catalog.... isn't easy!
CBS-Sugar was into SQ early, not only with the distribution of USA SQ lps and q8, but also with some italian releases; the only two that i'm aware of - and don't have it - are Pooh "Alessandra" and Gigliola Cinquetti "E io le canto cosi".
Hope to find out if they did also Q8, however... while RCA Italiana 8-tracks were at the same quality-level of USA ones, the italian CBS 8-track were a lot below their USA counterparts at least up to 1975, and these are easy to spot, because form 1975 all cassette/carts were brown in color, while previously were white.
Here's a Santana "Caravanserai" italian release: brown cart is a 1975 issue, white (yellowed!) is the original 1972 release.
 

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